Dentists & My ADHD Son | ADHD Information

My son used to dread the dentist so much, he once spit in his face ( embarrassing-the pediodentist was mine when i was little).  He is allowed to bring his game boy and play it while they are "working" on him.  The dentist made it int a game- where can you hold it-still be able to see it-but still let me do the exam/cleaning.  Son now thinks its great to go.  Could you maybe get a tape player w/ headphones and a soothing tape (ocean?).  Have him listen too it with a pair of those eye things(have no idea what they are called-they block the light) on?  Might stop the lights in his eyes from bothering him.   Good Luck! kimber26 - that's a great idea about the headphones & glasses.  I may just try that.  I left a message with his regular doctor to see if it there is anything else we can do at home to help with the sensory part of it.  That's a great idea.  i'm going to put a reminder to myself so i know to do it before he goes next time.  keep my fingers crossed.

Wow, I'm sorry that your son is scared of the dentist.  I think lots of  *adults* also have a fear of dentists.  This must be a common problem, so there must be techniques to try to ease the anxiety.  My ADHD daughter has never been afraid, but my youngest was.  So I took her to a pediatric dentist and she did great there.  So based on my experience, I would find a pediatric dentist that is really good at making kids feel comfortable. 

He could be in a "rut" at your current dentist since he has had so many failed visits.  The office itself may inspire feelings of dread, so maybe a change of venue would help.  Good Luck!

Notsosure, is your son on medication?

Thanks all for responding.  I'm going to try to answer all questions in one email.

Jillette - I offered him lots of surprises, a new sony playstation game, money, trip to the carnival, anything, just didn't work.  They do have lots of flavors and told him he could choose - cookie dough, strawberry, etc.  Still that didn't seem to matter to him. 

cr12345mr - he goes to the top Pediatric dentist in our area.  They have always been very patient with him and always understood.  (they were my husband's dentists when he was little and the kids think that is cool).  I'm afraid to switch because another dentist might not be as tollerable as they have been.

IMac - yes my son takes 20 mg of metadate each day.  he has said that it does help him with focus etc.  I started doing more research on Sensory dysf. and i'm about ready to call his doctor for a referral to a occup therapist. as he had what they call a "melt-down" from too much of the sensory stimuli there (loud brush, bright lights, taste of toothpaste/floride used).  I'm getting more convinced that he needs help with that too.

I do not have much advice to you except offer him a surprise once the appointment is done.  My girl cannot stand taste so they let her choose a flavor is that possible? My son has ADHD and sensory issues.  He's almost 8 now and has also gone to the pediatric dentist since he was three.  He has always given them some problems , but seems to do better when he comes in the morning (the hygienist explained that kids often do better in the morning, with less sensitivity and anxiety).  Getting him used to an electric toothbrush has also helped.  They have televisions with VCRs in the rooms for them to watch, and it helps distract Josh from what they are doing to him (so much that it is hard for them to get his attention). The sunglasses are a necessity.  They give him a lot of choices regarding the flavors of the flouride and cleaning stuff- they have some tasty sounding choices and have it on a menu for them to choose from- he really likes that touch and it helps elicit his cooperation.  When Josh got a cavity last year, I was dreading how filling it would go, but the nitrous oxide was great.  He liked the experience so much that he did much better after that visit even though we didn't use it for his check up (he was disappointed that we wouldn't use it again, but at least he didn.  We really try to focus on positive reinforcement for his dentist visits and I give him a rating on his behavior that corresponds to a reward that he knows of in advance, so he is motivated to try to control himself.  An OT would probably have good suggestions, they probably deal with a lot of kids with dentist issues.  Good Luck with your next visit!
notsosure-  sunglasses would work too!  (I was thinking of something else.)  Good Luck!

  Sorry in advance, if I repeat anyone else's advise. I don't have time to read all of the replies right now.

 

  Does son have any siblings ? If yes, could you take son to their appts and let him observe what happens during the cleaning ? Could son attend your cleaning appts (and his Dad's) and watch, so he could get use to the idea before they attempt to clean his teeth ?

 

  Is his dentist a pediatric dentist ? Maybe switching to a pediatric dentist, that specilizes in working with fearful kids, would help ?

 

  Could they do the cleaning in stages, like one day (or week...depending on how overwhelmed he gets from going there), they do the flossing, the next time they do the scraping, the next time they do the polishing, etc...drags it out and it would be inconvenient, but maybe that would help son get accustommed to the whole procedure. Just an idea.

 

  Sometimes us Mom's gotta get creative in our approaches with our kids.

 

  It sounds like you're doing a great job. Taking him to the dentist is not a pleasant experience for you or him, and yet you keep doing it. Kudos to you !

 

 

 

Mere38933.3684143519

Thanks for all the responses.

I do also have a 10 year old daughter (non-adhd) who goes to every appointment at the same time (they do them together) and she sits right next to him w/out a problem.  I may try bringing him to my appt or his dads.  I just never did that because I was afraid with  his ADHD what he might do (get up and run around office, etc), but worth a shot.

He does go to the top ped. dentist in our area.  I am getting a lot of creative and great advice for his next visit.  Can't wait to try all of it. Thanks so much

my son had adhd, and his dentist ended up referring him to a pediatric dental specialist.  they have gameboys, and toys and games, and videos and anything you can think of, i've not seen a kid go there that wasnt' thrilled to be there.  my son now even asks to go to the dentist just to visit.

on the other hand, my friends son, has cp,  but has severe sensory issues,  can't stand for anything in his mouth.  they take him to a specialist also, but he has all his cleanings done at the hospital while under anethesia.  they actually put him to sleep for all his dental work, no matter how minor. 

My  7 year old ADHD/ODD son also had anxiety over going to the dentist. They do give him a choice of fun sunglasses to wear . They also let him hold the suction that they use so maybe he feels like he has control over something. Our hygenist also shows him each tool they need to use for cleaning and lets him touch each one. NOw he does not mind going, of course hosing a prize from the prize boxes they have at the end of visit helped too!  Good luck!   My daughter, who isn't ADHD, and is 9 years old has had horrible teeth since
she was about 3. She has, unfortunately, always had to be sedated when we
go. They give her a liquid to drink, and then use the nitrous oxide gas to
help calm her as well. She was so anxious when we would go, that she
would cover her face and not take her hands off. And, the work had to be
done, so what could we do. Now that she's older, she has just been using
the nitrous oxide gas, and that seems to be enough. Our dentist also has
the funny/cute sunglasses for the kids to use so the light doesn't hurt their
eyes or scare them. The other thing is that we get an early appointment,
first thing in the morning, and that also seems to help some, to get it over
with.

Good luck! I know you're frustration.

Hi all.  I know this really doesn't have to do with my son's ADHD but feel the need to get it all out.   He has been going to his dentist since he was 3 years old every 6 months.  He is now 8.  Throughout the years he has let the dentist look at his teeth but has never let the hygenist clean them.  (we are talking 11 visits in all so far).  Well 6  months ago they scheduled him for a cleaning today thinking he is now old enough.  It was a nightmare.  He let the hygenist look at his teeth but as soon as she had the brush out with the past, he clamed up, cried and wouldn't let her do anything.  The hygentist told him it taste good and another little girl told him that it did not, well then he jump out of his chair and that was it.  he does have some oversensitivity problems so I am contribuing all this to that.  He doesn't like the sound, the taste or the mask the hygentis wears.  yet he's never tried the paste. 

Are any of your children afraid of the dentist and if so, what have you done to calm their fears.  We went out this morning and bought him an electric toothbrush after his appointment because it will sound like what they have so I hope that helps, plus they said next time he could bring his own toothpaste.  I just don't know how to help him deal with this.  He does cognitive behavior therapy for his anxieties.  I kind of feel bad too because I tried to beg, bribe and anything else I could do to let them clean his teeth, took things from him, didn't work.

Thanks for listing. just needed to vent as I am really upset at myself for letting myself get so mad at him for acting like this when I know that it is due to sensory issues.  He doesn't have enough to see an O.T. so he's never been treated for them, but I may discuss that with his doctor at his next appointment in october.